China overtook Vietnam to reclaim the number one position as the largest foreign investor in Laos last year, according to an annual report from the Ministry of Planning and Investment. China’s investment last year soared to over US$1 billion compared to US$88.9 million in 2015 ...

The 87th Mekong River joint patrol led by China, Laos, Myanmar and Thailand started on Tuesday from Jingha Port in southwest China’s Yunnan Province. The patrol, expected to last four days and three nights, will involve joint inspections and an anti-drug publicity campaign. The four countries ...

Champassak province should close all loopholes relating to the timber trade, and review all the procedures that have frustrated investors and delayed development. Deputy Prime Minister Dr Sonexay Siphandone tabled these issues in discussions with Champassak authorities during his visit to the province last week. ...

Ministry of Health officials and personnel from around the country met yesterday in Vientiane to review the progress of the health sector in 2015-2016 and discuss plans for the year ahead. Participants reported on their health activities and shared their future plans. They discussed advanced ...

Lawmakers in Laos are urging the government to be stricter on foreign business entities in the country in an effort to protect the environment and protect the livelihood of the people. Khamsaphone Xayavong, a member of parliament from Oumxay district, Oudomxay province in northern Laos, called ...

Champassak province farmers will be supported in planting thousands of hectares of cashew nut trees after the provincial Administration Office gave the go ahead for a US$9 million Korean project. Deputy Director of the provincial Agriculture and Forestry Department, Mr Viengsay Sipraphone, told Vientiane Times on ...

Delegates from ASEAN member states are in Vientiane to attend a training session titled ASEAN Master Assessors on ASEAN Sustainable Tourism Award, to prepare for awards in January 2018. The aims of the award are to encourage jointly responsible actions among public, private and local ...

The leadership of the Lao People’s Revolutionary Party has told the government to continue to prioritise the addressing of land issues along with greater promotion of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to boost the economy. The Party leadership gave the advice at the fourth Plenary ...

The Thai and Lao pollution control agencies have agreed to work together to reduce air pollution caused by vehicles in the two countries, especially at border checkpoints. A meeting attended by officials from the two countries was held last Thursday near the border post in Nong ...

UNICEF has provided more than 36 billion kip (US$4.4 million) to fund education and clean water programmes in some 100 targeted schools across the country. The money will be used to finance early childhood education, primary education as well as water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) ...

Last week, there was a flurry of activity in Cambodia-Laos relations tied to Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen’s anticipated visit to Laos. While both sides discussed a range of issues within their bilateral relationship, the interaction also once again put the focus on the outstanding ...

Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith on Monday visited Xanakham district, Vientiane province, where he encouraged local authorities to switch to organic agriculture and abandon the use of chemicals. He urged authorities to make use of the local potential for organic agriculture, saying this would help to ...

An agricultural service centre, which began construction in Huaphan province on February 18, aimed to enhance the quantity and the quality of crops and animals produced in the province for export to Vietnam. The agricultural service centre is the largest agricultural cooperation project between Vietnam ...

A dam prepared for building and construction by Laos on the Mekong river will have unfavorable effects not just on Lao towns however likewise in close-by Thailand, a union of Thai ecological groups states, including that the government in Bangkok ought to cancel strategies to ...

At least 20 finance officials in Savannakhet province have been found guilty of spending billions of kip of state money on personal affairs, according to a report released this week. The officials allegedly collected more than 5.8 billion kip from state revenue sources but did ...

Tourism officials from Vietnam, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Myanmar discussed solutions for luring tourists to their region and integrate their tourist industry as they met in Ho Chi Minh City on 9 September. The five countries are member of a political, economic, and cultural bloc known ...

The July 23 Xe-Pian Xe-Namnoy hydropower dam collapse that left at least 35 dead, 99 missing and 6,000 homeless in Attapeu province in southern Laos was an unprecedented manmade tragedy and wake-up call for the communist-run nation. Keep reading ...

Laos has joined other countries to raise public awareness about the dangers of rabies, which kills approximately 59,000 people globally every year. More ...

The Lancang-Mekong cooperation media summit will be held on July 1-3 by the Lao Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism in cooperation with the Chinese newspaper People’s Daily. The meeting will be held under the theme “Cooperation in Lancang-Mekong Community for a Bright Future.” Keep reading ...

Laos has signed an agreement on the Establishment of the Asian Forest Cooperation Organisation and is the 10th country to sign this document. Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Dr Lien Thikeo signed the agreement on behalf of the government, according to a statement from the ...